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Apple computers in general are higher quality than typical PC's. Most of us hear PC horror stories of video cards going out, disk drives failing, and so on. However, it seems like more of these stories are now coming out of the Mac community. I am alarmed at some of the emails sent to us concerning hardware failures, shoddy Apple Care support, and serious OS update issues.

Apple is by no means new to hardware issues. Take a good look at Low End Mac's Road Apple section. Apple history is cluttered with less than spectacular systems. Most of these systems represent compromised design issues. A few Road Apples, like the 5200-5300 series, can be classified as serious hardware problems. But above all, most represent a case of bad design decisions that kept them from being all they should have been.

With the recent noisy fan problem of the PowerPC towers, the USB-crippling OS upgrade problem, and the plethora of PowerBook/iBook hardware failures, Apple appears to be experiencing quality control issues. Personally, every Mac I have ever owned still resides at my residence. They continue to work as they always have. Could I just be lucky?

I have had a few problems with older Macs. I once crashed the hard drive on a Classic II by aliasing the Date/Time Control Panel in the start-up folder. The PRAM battery was dead and I thought I had come up with a clever way to set the time upon boot. Mistake! That didn't last too long. I eventually hit Sad Mac territory and had to reformat the disk. I reluctantly went out and bought a new PRAM battery.

On the Apple II side, I once had a temperamental power supply that required several off/on cycles to get it to power on. The problem was fixed with $5 and a trip to eBay. I have heard stories of Mac Plus power issues. Nothing is more detrimental to a system than poor air circulation. Both computers are fanless. Could the Cube go down this road? Will the fanless iMac hold out? Apple says they will and I have heard nothing to make me believe differently.

Does Apple currently have any new Road Apples in the product line? It is Low End Mac's policy not to label current production machines as Road Apples. I wonder if they have any new candidates in mind? Only time will tell.

We tear apart Apple because we care. Most of us have invested a great deal of time and money in the platform. We feel it our duty, nay, obligation, to rip Apple when they drop the ball. We expect more and demand Apple step up to the plate.

If anyone has any experience with a buggy Apple product, please send us an email. I would be interested to know if this is just a common misconception or a serious trend.

May 28, 2003:

I picked up an iBook 600 at a closeout in April 2003. Three weeks, maybe 120 hours of uptime (including suspend time) the Toshiba 20 GB hard drive failed. Apple did a fast repair and replaced it with a IBM 30 GB. I'll give them credit where it's due. However, the iBook was a replacement for an upgraded Bondi that is on analog board number 3. Not good. More annoying was Jaguar, updates, apps and data. Overall, it took 10 hours.

I'm OK with all this but it is a bit much. The real negative impact is all the people who saw me lugging dead Apple computers around, all potential Apple customers.


kcavaliere

May 28, 2003:

Although most of my experiences with Apple have been good, as well as the experiences of the people with whom I've helped switch, I've had a few issues that, to a less-understanding person, would be unacceptable.

I purchased one of the iBook dual-USB laptops when they first came out. I immediately found there was an issue with the sound. I contacted Apple and they said they were working on a fix. About a week later, a software update resolved the problem.

Later, I got a G4 Cube, refurbished, with a 15" Apple LCD. The LCD had a strange issue where, after warming up, the bottom half of the LCD would appear scrambled. This happened with two separate video cards, so I knew it was the LCD. I sent the LCD into Apple's service center for repair and they found nothing wrong. I sent it in again and they replaced the LCD with a new refurbished one. No problems. Turnaround time: about a week and a half.

Next, I purchased a flat panel iMac immediately after they became available. Upon receiving the computer, I powered it up and it booted into Classic and started running a diagnostics program. Then the computer rebooted and started over. Since I was going to repartition the drive anyway, I erased the drive, installed the operating systems, and everything was okay. Of note, however, the iMac does not have an electronic serial number! I reported this to Apple for their records.

Finally, I recently received an iPod 10 GB. Out of the box, the iPod did not charge the battery and would not work unless plugged into the Firewire port or A/C adapter. I sent the iPod to Apple and they sent back a new iPod. Turnaround time: about 5 days.

Although I have had more than my fair share of anomalies with Apple hardware, I am still very, very happy with my Macs. I've never had good experiences with PC hardware -- especially when teamed with Windows and it's issues. I'm staying with Apple for the long term, whether or not I have little issues like I've had in the past.

Aaron

May 28, 2003:

Our families or businesses have had extremely favorable experience over the past 24 years or so. **** = outstanding functionality, no stars = poor.

Failures and service as detailed:
Apple II *

Apple IIe ****

Mac 512

Mac SE30 ****

Mac II ci **** (10+ - > their only problem was they would not quit!)

Performa 6300, 6320, and 6400 (a design disaster you note, but reliable and functional for uses needed)

PowerBook color (140?)**

Mac Classic II and Mac IIsi (slow dogs but durable)

Pismo (Firewire 200) Powerbook 400 **** (2) - oddly, both were dead on arrival - both motherboards and one battery replaced within 72 hours by Texas AppleCare and now going strong for 3 years

iMac G3 s ** (2)

iMac DV G3 *** (motherboard failure, repaired instantly by local AppleCare store, now ok for 2 yr.)

B+W G3 400 **** (except for bizarre lack of firmware to make FireWire external HDs bootable)

iBook 14" screen *** (BUT has been sent back to Texas 3 times for one motherboard, one HD, and two screen replacements; good news - now works)

Flat panel iMacs *** great so far, except for OS X grief.

We are generally sticking with OS 9.2.2 to preserve our sanity and pocketbooks, though I have no doubt that I will go to OSX eventually (? by v. 5.0).

AppleCare clearly is a MUST for current Macs, and there does seem to be a periodic problem over the years, but compared with most hardware, and especially computers, Apple's record for quality is good to outstanding, and AppleCare comes through reliably, given enough persistence.

Bob Whitney

May 27, 2003:

Hi there,

I resonate with your article. I jumped ship from the Windows world about four years ago, and since have moved my two offices over to the Mac world. On the whole, I'm pleased with the experience. On the other hand, I've been dismayed at the failure rate of these expensive machines. We have (or have had) a PowerBook 520, PowerBook 1400, Blueberry iBook, Pismo, Dual USB iBook, slot loading iMac and a flat panel iMac. Up until the Pismo, the line was rock solid (including having the Blueberry being stepped on by a 6 year old!). However, I've sent the Pismo back two times, swapped out three DVD drives, and finally gave up and bought an external DVD drive. The Dual USB iBook has been shipped back for screen lighting issues. While both have mostly been covered under warranty, these are production machines and we can't afford to have them out of the shop. The slot loading iMac has had about as much money put into it as it cost, all for motherboard-based video issues. The flat panel is too new to have a track record, but seems to be solid.

I must admit that paying top dollar for a computer led me to expect better in the quality control department. At this point, I've foresworn purchasing any new Mac products until they reach the later half of their production life. That way the bugs will have a chance to surface and I can make an informed decision.

Gary Harrison

May 26, 2003:

John,

Where are the statistics for your article? You blast them yet provide no evidence of this. On the flip-side, Apple has had overwhelmingly high customer service marks in literally every consumer reports magazine, often a double digit higher than everyone's ratings.

I myself have owned a 15-inch TiPowerBook G4 667 MHz, 12-inch iBook G4 700 MHz, and now a TiPowerBook G4 1 GHz with Superdrive. I am in the US Marines and I treat things pretty harshly. My Macs have all worked flawlessly while my PC-using friends' laptops have bit the bullet. I have owned 2 iPods, a 5 GB one and now a 20 GB one. They both are fully functional with no problems. For my desktop, I have a Power Mac G4 Cube and a Power Mac G4 867 MHz with Superdrive, both have never had a single problem.

You said you heard stories. Well, they're just that, stories. Look at the actual industry statistics and you'll find Apple on top in virtually every category.

JAustin


My Reponse:

It is great to hear a good consumer report. Believe me, I am a complete Mac-o-file. I have never owned a PC, and hopefully, (if Apple gets its act together), will never have to. The only statistics I can offer you concern market share and other freely available financial data. I don't believe that Apple releases any internal data concerning quality control. But you are correct, Macs tend to do much better in the consumer reports category. The reason I am curious about current "Road Apples" is because I keep hearing stories about current faulty Apple offerings. Primarily, the problems seem to lie more with PowerBooks/iBooks than anything else. I have personally never had any issue with Apple quality.

But then again, I am not rough on my Macs. I am a Veteran of six years in the Air Force. So as you might imagine, I "baby" my computers. If your computers can take the harsh life of a Marine, it is definitely a sign that Apple is doing something right, but I suspected that all along.

Take Care,

John Ward

May 26, 2003:

Just to reply to your lemon query:

I bought my wife an engraved 10 GB iPod last May for her birthday. After installing the 1.2.1 update that Apple released, the thing would only hold a battery charge for 3 hours.

We called Apple and they said to send it in for the "repair" service, which is actually replaced with a refurb service, but that's another issue.

After 3 months we finally got a replacement. It locked up whenever the FireWire was plugged in. So they sent us another. It too locked up with FireWire and the hard drive made horrendous noises.

Finally, Apple stepped up to the plate and sent us a brand new, in the box, engraved 10 GB iPod. It worked great, for a week. It too now locks up while attempting to play music with the FireWire charging cable plugged in.

Not wanting to deal with the hassle of waiting 3 more weeks for a replacement, we are just living with it. It is a shame too. My original release 5 GB has performed flawlessly for over 2 years, even with all the buggy updates.

Regards,
Thad Hoffman


We currently own these fully functioning and flawless Apples:
Aug 1996 132 MHz 7600 (upgraded to a Sonnet G3 400 MHz running 10.2.6)
Oct 1997 166 MHz 1400c (upgraded to a Sonnet G3 333 MHz running 9.1)
March 2002 600 MHz 14.1" iBook running 10.2.6
Dec 2001 5 GB iPod
May 2002 10 GB iPod (that won't play while charging)

May 23, 2003:

Hi there,

In a recent article on the web, "Are some current Apples really lemons?", you asked for reports of problems with Apple products. So, I thought I'd send you my experience.

I recently purchased a PowerBook 867Mhz. It is my first Mac ever and I like it very much. But I have problems with it that many other Mac users have already reported. The bottom of the machine is impossibly hot and so this "laptop" simply cannot be used on my lap without burning myself. I have to rest it on a cushion instead. Meanwhile, I cannot close the laptop without putting something between the screen or the keyboard, otherwise the screen gets "grid marks" on it. The Titanium paint peels and chips and makes this expensive "professional" machine look cheap, nasty, and ugly. Apple says all these problems are "normal".

I wouldn't mind if this were some cheap "throwaway" Windows machine, but this is a Mac, supposedly superior in quality and a darn sight more expensive. This is one of their top-end machines and yet these machines have such basic design problems. I also have a Toshiba Windows laptop and it is a lot more solidly built, has no design problems, and cost a lot less than the PowerBook.

Now, I don't know if my next computer purchase will be an Apple or a Windows machine because of this experience. I want it to be because, aside from the above problems, I recognize that there are so many things to like about Apple products in comparison to their Windows counterparts. But it's no good "wanting" something if it can't deliver.

Like yourself, I am disturbed to hear that there are problems with virtually everything Apple is producing these days. Quality control, responsibility to customers, and general reliability and value for the money seems to have all gone out the window. This will lead some users to switch TO Windows (or back).

Just thought I'd share this.

Ian Groves

May 24, 2003:

I am the tech teacher at a school with about 140 Mac computers going back to the LC 550. We have 60 iMac computers between six months and two years old. I am happy to say we have experienced few problems with the hardware with one notable exception. The optical mouse that comes with our iMacs are failing at an alarming rate on the lab computers. We have replaced six of them out of the 35 machines we use within the last five months. I have two more that are in need of replacing now. Needless to say, I'm not replacing them with an Apple mouse.

The 60 iMacs have held up well enough I think. One logic board failure, a CD/DVD player failure, and one hard drive failure. I don't know what the industry standard is, but would love to see an article on this subject.

Dennis Lauritzen

Nov 20, 2003:

Dear Sir:

This is my experience with an Apple lemon machine, and there is no relief in sight, not from AppleCare, not from my Apple warranty, and not even Steve Jobs.

I am in Apple hell. As an Apple user for many years, I have never had a complaint against the company. Eleven months ago, I purchased a Dual 1.25 GHz G4 with 2 GB of RAM and a studio display to produce a feature length DVD. This DVD should have been finished months ago. It is a video and DVD presented by Martin Scorsese. For eleven months, Apple has not been able to repair this computer.

The computer is on its third logic board. The processors, RAM, power supply, keyboard, mouse, Ethernet, and USB were all replaced. All third party devices were checked. We ran every diagnostic program recommended by Apple. DiskWarrior showed a recurring problem: shrinking disk volume. There is a loud clunking, clanking sound inside the tower that Apple tech reps heard over the phone. The computer's time jumps ahead two hours. When the computer is started or restarted, the mouse freezes. System preferences and Adobe Photoshop elements have disappeared. I keep getting a dialog box telling me to install OS 9 software for the printer. I have installed this half a dozen times and the problem still exists. The computer freezes and the only way to free it is to pull the wall plug. Many other problems occur. The display brightness and sound volume changes by itself. The optical bay door opens by itself. If I want an application or a file, there is no telling what I will get. The problems that exist can not be predicted. A new one pops up every day.

I have lost a great deal of time and money going along with Apple. Is eleven months long enough to resolve this problem? Apple does not think so. They have changed the entire guts of this computer. They sent out Mac repair people three times to replace parts and to repair this computer. In order to keep this case from ending, they just create more case file numbers, 19261472 and 17330519. With those two numbers, they were out here three times to change parts. Now they want me to take this computer to a repair station, and no telling how long this would take. I started to tell one of their customer relations people that I was a disabled veteran with 100% disability. Before I could finish, she started to mock me, "you're going to get all the veterans to march in front of our store in protest, right?"

I think eleven months is long enough. When Apple made its recent announcement of the G5 computer, I proposed that we work out an upgrade deal and resolve this issue. What choice do I have?

Len S.